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Gil Hova

@gil.hova.net

2.1K followers 1.1K following 3.5K posts

He/him. JC/NYC. Game designer rebooting, robot fight facilitator at NHRL, weird/noisy music, ferret fan. Still not a negotiable Final Fantasy currency. All my links: https://gil.hova.net

gil.hova.net

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 15d

Here it is! Ferret Frenzy, the push-your-luck card game I designed with Channing Shattuck about the best pets in the world, is live on KS (and Channing is killing it with the campaign, he's way better than I ever was): www.kickstarter.com/projects/sha...

FERRET FRENZY: A Party Game of Risk, Reward & Ridiculousness

Unleash the push-your-luck thrill of Blackjack with the grabby chaos of Spoons in this wild game of SPEED and GREED.

www.kickstarter.com

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

Tomorrow: I return to Hollywood Studios for a few thrill rides!

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

TOMORROWLAND SPEEDWAY: Nothing special about this ride, but maybe that’s because I was “lucky” enough to go to Action Park as a kid. I asked my partner to drive (she doesn’t have a driver’s license), and she had a blast.

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

I’ll always be grinning ear-to-ear throughout this ride, from the gravestones in the entry area to the elevator ride to the spectral hitchhikers.

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

I will always appreciate how well they walk the line of “spooky, funny, never actually scary.” The whole ride is suffused with that spirit (no pun intended).

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

THE HAUNTED MANSION: Yesterday I mentioned how dated EPCOT’s rides felt. THM is even older than them, and I hope they never change a thing. After all these decades, I can still feel the cackling laughter and sheer joy the Imagineers felt crafting this ride.

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

THE ENCHANTED TIKI LOUNGE: I wanted to check this one out after watching Defunctland’s bit on automatons. It’s dated as heck, but the technology involved in bringing the whole room to life is really cool.

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: A classic ride. It’s silly, it’s goofy, it’s maybe a bit problematic at times. I still love the ship-to-ship cannon scene. I don’t recall it getting me so wet in the past, especially during the mini-flume (which feels like a sharper drop each time I ride it)

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

In terms of plot… well, true to the TRON franchise, it’s unfortunately not great. That’s too bad, I feel like they missed an opportunity. The way the ride narrative ends is weird and anticlimactic; it feels like the ride climax was removed at the last moment and they had to write around it awkwardly

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

And mechanically, the ride delivers. Well-paced, smooth-running. The motorcycle-riding position is a bit awkward at first, but it makes sense. (I can see some folks finding it uncomfortable though)

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

And my goodness, the LOOK of this ride. The bold reds and blues, the sweeping lines, the way the ride queue is revealed. It’s nothing short of gorgeous.

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

TRON: LIGHTCYCLE/RUN: Space Mountain now has a younger sibling that is cooler and prettier. TRON is a visual/graphic designer’s pipe dream. It may not be as popular as Disney would like, but that’s not out of lack of aesthetics.

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

Anyway, this might be my last time on Space Mountain, barring a major refresh. Partially for the above reason, and partially because of…

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

SPACE MOUNTAIN: It’s a good classic coaster, but… maybe I’m too old for it? It made me nauseated, and coasters rarely do that. I’ve done this one 2x before, and didn’t get that reaction. Maybe it’s the disorientation of speeding in the dark, and my limbic system just can’t handle that anymore.

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

Disney magic! Turns out there’s a few characters handled by live actors, and the computer animation is done in real time, like puppetry. It’s a very sweet effect.

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

MONSTERS INC LAUGH FLOOR: I thought this was a static computer-animated film, until some of the characters started addressing audience members by name and offering unique reactions to specific moments.

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

I love how Disney coasters have story beats, almost like cutscenes. They help riders catch their breath and build distance between emotional peaks in interesting ways.

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1h

GIL RATES DISNEYWORLD RIDES: MAGIC KINGDOM

SEVEN DWARVES MINE TRAIN: Started the day off with a kid coaster, but a nicely-executed one. Maybe the projection mapping was a bit creepy here.

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 14h

A game set in India, with Indians featured prominently on the cover? What will they think of next?

Seriously, this looks like a better version of an excellent game. Hopefully they made no missteps here. I will still likely prefer my homemade version set in space though

Omar H (occasional boardgamer) @itomarhernandez.bsky.social · 15h

Hey @gil.hova.net Saw this and immediately thought of Sector Goa, figure you'll be at least curious

gamefound.com/en/projects/...?

Goa by Quined Games - Gamefound

A modern classic reborn! Originally released in 2004, Goa by renowned designer Rüdiger Dorn quickly became a cornerstone of the eurogame genre — praised for its elegant blend of auction, resource mana...

gamefound.com

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1d

Tomorrow: Magic Kingdom!

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1d

I will say that on Friday, I’m returning to do a few thrill rides: the Guardians coaster, Test Track, and the Mars side of Mission: Space. I think I’ll enjoy those more.

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1d

We finished with a DuckTales app game in the Mexican pavilion, but the app hung frequently and the big climax never got triggered.

Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1d

The script feels like it was written by a half-asleep marketer. It’s narrated by Catherine O’Hara and Eugene Levy. You can almost hear them grimace as they try to work with the script’s bland attempts at humo(u)r. I hope they got paid a lot of CAD for this.

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1d

But this is an updated version, and it is about as delicious as rotten poutine. It’s a 10-minute long tourism ad with no charisma or humor. Big sweeping music that does nothing to distinguish it from the other attractions with big sweeping music.

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1d

But even that was good compared to…

CANADA: FAR AND WIDE: My partner was excited to take me to this, because last time she saw it, Martin Short was the host and it was very entertaining.

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Gil Hova @gil.hova.net · 1d

It felt like two different visions competing for airtime. Just really confused.